I am finally done! I saw this in the magazine and wanted to make as a store sample. I had to wait for the yarn. By the time the yarn came in, Ms. Stewart saw it and wanted to make it also. Since she was a customer, she got first dips on the yarn when it arrived and I had to wait for a second shipment. This is a store sample.

At the beginning I found the pattern tedious, especially the slip stitching across the entire row. It was not until I had done it once that I discovered an easier option was single crochet. By the time I got to the back panel, I was very comfortable with the pattern, despite having to frog the second half due to a missed row of double crochet. I also experience stitch count errors with the front, which did not present themselves on the back panel.

As I completed the project, I began to wonder: was the yarn made specifically for this pattern or is it just a coincidence that the colors line up so well? Perhaps if I took the time to read the whole article – provided there was one – I might know the answer to the question.

The name of my project – The Adventures of Raindance Maggie by The Red Hot Chili Peppers – was borrowed from Water From A Vine Leaf Shawl, whose name was changed to more accurately match the colorway.

These started out as a store sample – commissioned by my boss: “Annette” – for Cascade Fixation (Fiber Content: 98.3% cotton, 1.7% elastic; Yarn Color: 9245; Yarn Weight: 3, DK, Light Worsted) and pattern: Basic Crochet Bikini. I chose to make the pattern for the smallest cup size: A. The pattern called for Crochet Hook: B/1 – 2.25 mm and Patons Grace Yarn, but the Fixation called for crochet hook: F/5 – 3.75. I started using the hook the pattern called for, but found it a little challenging using a smaller hook with the Fixation and the “branches” (affectionate term for customers, mostly female) at The Knitting Tree L A kept commenting that the cup was looking too small, so I switched to the larger hook. Being a homosexual, I don’t have much experience with breasts or cup sizes. 🙂

After switching to the larger hook, the branches kept commenting that the cup size was not accurate, so I did some errata investigation. I could not find any, but did find a bigger and much more detailed picture on Ravelry that indicated I was crocheting with the wrong orientation. The pattern does not clearly indicate this; I have commented on the pattern, but never heard back from AllFreeCrochet.com. That problem solved, I set forth, but for some reason experienced difficulty with my counting and had to restart at least two times.

In the meantime, a young, beautiful friend of mine from the store said whe would model the bikini upon completion, but A cups were not going to “be big enough for her girls,” so I changed to C cups and restarted again. Upon completion, the branches of “The Tree” told me that the C cup looked more like a D cup. Aiyaa! I proceeded to make the second cup, as I had not seen my model lately and she would be the ultimate decider. After finishing the second cup with the same majority opinion, no one was a fan of the pointed cup – a la Madonna’s cone bra from Vogue.

During one of Annette’s sillier moments she discovered another use for the huge cup: a baby bonnet for the gangsta baby who resides in the store. As an exclamation point on the story of these baby bonnets, I decided to name them after Blame It On The Bossa Nova by Annette Funicello.

I think I may still attempt to make the bikini, but will have to work out that point or find someone that likes it!

I was so excited when I learned that the Skacel Zauberball Crazy yarn had come in, so Lenora and I could begin the updated Convergence sweater pattern pictured in the 2013 Crochet Special Collector’s Issue of Vogue Knitting. My excitement was quickly quelled when a phone call from Min indicated that she was going to make it as well, leaving only two balls left. I suppose I could start, as more yarn has been ordered, but I was really excited to begin my first top/sweater.

So, I started looking through the Rowan and Berroco books for a crochet pattern I could make as a store sample. I was sadly disappointed that the Rowan books only had knitting patterns. It’s not that I can’t knit, but as the crochet instructor at the store, I have to represent. The Berroco books were ideal as they explicitly indicated whether the item pictured was crocheted or knitted, saving time of perusing each pattern for determination. I am writing both company’s with my opinions.

Finally, Bruce suggested something out of the Be Sweet Bambino, which has just been marked down 25%. I had just seen the Mitered Squares Scarf by Annette Petavy on Ravelry and knowing I could make that without purchasing the pattern, I set to designing. Allow me to comment on the Be Sweet yarn at this point. It is a nice cotton/bamboo blend with – what one might describe as soutache – plied together. I am not an organic type of person, so I find the price point for the yarn to be exorbitant. I used the Bambino Taffy which is comprised of five colors that are tied/knotted – yes, knotted – together. Coincidentally, my pattern works out so that there is enough of each color within the skein for a single square.

The pattern includes my color scheme if you wish to duplicate the scarf pictured. Lenora prompted me to write up the pattern quickly, so she could purchase it for her daughter, who like Be Sweet yarn. While writing it up, I thought: “Why not ask her daughter to test the pattern and give it to her for free?” That is my plan and I’m sticking to it. I am awaiting confirmation from the daughter to test the pattern. Once it has been tested, I will make it available in the patterns section and on Ravelry.

This was made as a sample for The Knitting Tree, L A. It only took two days to make all the components and sew them together. The wording in the pattern was a bit unusual, but easily modified into something I could understand. While I detest sewing components together, this was not so bad. My guess is because the seams are so short and there is not a multitude of components to seam together. The most popular comment at the store was that the eggs look like boobies. WTH? They look like eggs to me and they were fun to make. My bacon differs from the original pattern in that I added an additional two stripes of the darker color for a more balanced piece of bacon.

One of my favorite songs is “Night and Day,” by Cole Porter, performed by U2 from the album Red, Hot +Blue: A Tribute to Cole Porter. I finally was able to obtain the song for my own listening pleasure and decided to create this scarf as homage, and as a sample for my upcoming Filet Crochet class at The Knitting Tree, L A.

This filet crochet pattern is based on a 3×3 grid, not your normal 4 x 3 grid, so that every square represents 3 double crochet versus 4.

As with all my patterns:

I condone any realized profit from selling your finished project

I ask that you do not duplicate or copy the pattern for dissemination among your friends

If you are Ravelry, I would appreciate your linking your project to this recipe, so I can send a request to feature your finished object

This is my store sample for the tapestry crochet class I will begin teaching this month at The Knitting Tree L A. Had I been more attentive when making my yarn choices, I would have chosen two colors by the same manufacturer. I say this because it wasn’t until I started that I realized how much thinner/stretchy the Universal yarn was than the Cascade yarn. As such, I was not able to carry my colors because the first stitch in the lighter color never appeared proper. Therefore, while you can’t see them, there are a gazillion ends behind that fabric.

Pattern Proviso

The pattern is available on my patterns page, which may be accessed from the navigation menu at top or by following the pattern link. While I condone your profit from making this pillow, I do ask that you do not copy the pattern and disseminate among your friends, as I don’t think USD $2.50 is an exorbitant fee for a crochet pattern. As with all my patterns, if you maintain a presence on Ravelry, I would appreciate your linking to the pattern, so I can contact you and feature your project on the pattern page.

After doing a lot of short row test knitting for BananaKnits, I was curious if there was such a think as crochet short rows. With the concept firmly implanted in my head I set forth. I had some difficulty at first because I kept forgetting to “seal the short rows.” Once I remembered that key instruction, I was golden. However, I wanted to make this pattern a little different so I created a special stitch – Single Crochet Bar Front Loop – which I am just loving for it’s texture, and I think actually complements the gradient in the yarn.

2014-04-21 Addendum

This pattern is no longer available for free. To purchase this pattern, proceed to the Patterns page.